


The time in the world being coincidently not much longer, climate change lmao

by ericaclipperton



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Domestic, Extinction Rebellion, Introspection, M/M, climate justice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-26
Updated: 2019-10-26
Packaged: 2021-01-03 19:41:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,801
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21184907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ericaclipperton/pseuds/ericaclipperton
Summary: Dan get's asked to "join the rebellion" following the instagram picture he posted from the extinction rebellion picknick in june. So he starts thinking about activism while Phil makes quesadillas.





	The time in the world being coincidently not much longer, climate change lmao

**Author's Note:**

> Extinction Rebellion is an international movement that uses non-violent civil disobedience in an attempt to halt mass extinction and minimise the risk of social collapse – extinctionrebellion.earth
> 
> I am not involved with extinction rebellion, apart from going to a couple of their events in different cities.  
I feel as Dan and Phil scholars that after their coming out we should shift our focus not away from but also to other topics than sexuality. For the author Dan Howells increasing involvement with Breadtubers like Philosopytube and Contrapoints became a matter of interest.  
Because he has on multiple occasions tweeted and voiced his opinion on the topic, another interesting subject for me is Dans stance on the climate crisis and his involvement with climate justice organisations such as extinction rebellion.  
How did he become involved with them? Is he planning to further his commitment? How did he feel going to their events? Did his self-proclaimed status as an introvert, that doesn’t go outside, stand in the way? 
> 
> So, this is a tiny little fic on the events around the picture that Dan posted from an extinction rebellion picknick on the 30th of June this year.

Dan got the email being asked to „join the rebellion“ almost 3 months after he had posted a picture of himself at the extinction rebellion picknick.

He had mostly posted the selfie to give the group exposure, to encourage his followers to look into a cause he considered very much necessary. Sometimes Dan thought of his job as superficial, making funny videos on the internet. Yes, he made people laugh and that helped, but what did that really change, was there any substance to it? Shouldn’t he use all the influence he had gained and money he had miraculously earned in the last years for something bigger? Being put on the spot to do so was something else though. 

It was an uncommonly hot London summer. The air was dense and the pavement almost boiling from the heat. When he arrived at the London park only a couple of tube stations from their home a small crowd had already gathered. He first heard the beating of drums and then saw the colourful flags and signs with different slogans printed on them. Walking towards the gathering Dan felt increasingly anxious. 

„Discovering new things on your own“ was, next to the whole telling everybody and literally his mum he likes dick thing, on his 2019 new year’s resolution list, along with getting more involved politically. Great way to work on both at the same time he thought to himself, or more like how stupid to combine too things he was so terrified of and thus make them even worse. 

But he was here now, too late to turn around. 

He walked toward the gathering immediately joining in at watching a group of dancers moving to the beating of the drums. It gave him something to do, so he felt less weird just standing there alone. 

People in bigger and smaller groups were sitting on blankets and talking. They were scattered all over the grass and wearing colourful clothing, earthy some, bright, tie dye, wool, outdoor clothing, the extinction rebellion logo sewn or tagged on various pieces of fabric, stickers and patches all over. There were children in rainbow t shirts walking barefoot on the lawn. Women in flowy dresses with flower crowns on their heads not unlike the ones he had worn on several occasions. Close to him was a group of people eating food prepared on the community kitchen trucks. The flavour of dal and freshly baked bread in the air. 

He could see people of all ages lounging on the ground. Pensioners and younger people, probably his own age. They were the ones he felt most distant from. This scene was  
wildly different from what a meeting with his friends would look like. Different from the walls of comfort he had built over the years around himself. They exuded a freedom he was as envious of as he was terrified by it. He like to observe the energy around them, bath in its light, not sure if he wanted to have it and all the seeming stresses and discomfort that came with it. 

As the chatter of him rose with more and more protesters arriving, Dan stood around awkwardly. Kind of hoping somebody would recognize him because it would give him a reason to start a conversation. He was too shy to make a move and start chatting to somebody himself. Nobody recognized him. It was probably for the better. In the end he only stayed about 10 minutes, took a picture and then left. 

Later that day he uploaded the picture to Instagram and that was it.  
____________________________________________________________________

They had had a quiet day answering E-Mails, cleaning the house and looking at property online. They had wanted to move for ages, but just hadn’t found the perfect place yet. It was as exhausting as it was exciting. 

Now Dan was lying on the sofa with the laptop balanced on his knees and an almost empty bottle of diet coke next to him. With an anime playing on low volume and Phil making quesadillas in the kitchen as a background noise, Dan opened the email forwarded to him by his agent with the added headline „You probably shouldn’t get yourself arrested “.

„Subject: JOIN THE REBELLION! 

Dear Dan, 

join the rebellion and fight for climate justice! 

We saw your Instagram story from the 30th of June supporting the extinction rebellion picknick in the park. We hoped you had a lovely time and met some of our rebels. Thank you so much for the exposure. 

We are glad that you recognize the climate catastrophe as what it is: an imminent danger to humanity we must act on now! Getting involved is easy and we would be happy to have YOU take part in the rebellion and help make our cause better known.

The rebellion is a global event taking place in various cities across the globe including London. We will be starting to hold events, block infrastructure points in a completely non-violent way and educate people on the dangers ahead starting on the 7th of October for 12 days. 

With your online following and celebrity YOU can play an extraordinary role in the rebellion. Your participation or even your arrest could give us immense media coverage!  
Get in touch with us! Write us if you are down to fight for the survival of the planet! We can talk and you can join one of our action trainings.

We would love to you  
Abby from XR London“ 

Shortly after he had finished reading the email Phil came over from the kitchen balancing two plates and cutlery. 

„Could you maybe get the hot sauce and whichever other sauce you want? – And can we maybe put the next episode of fleabag on? “  
Setting the plates down on the coffee table Phil was eyeing him intently. Dan hadn’t yet looked up from his laptop screen since reading the email and subsequently opening about 20 new tabs on climate change, Greta Thunberg, extinction rebellion, himself (duh), the British prison system, non-violent action…  
„Please“ Phil asked again already guessing something was brewing inside Dan. 

Finally Dan looked up from his screen „Uhm, yes of course, do you want some water as well?“ Phil answered „Yes, that would be lovely“ while starring at Dan disappearing into the kitchen. 

They were watching the TV while eating the dinner Phil had prepared. The whole time Dan’s thoughts were wandering.  
Was he a hypocrite? Everything he did, he did kind of half assed. He was vegan until there was something delicious, he wanted to eat that had meat in it. He could abstain from milk as long as it was convenient. He wanted to buy ethically but there was this one t-shirt he really wanted and then well…. He thought climate change was a real threat and wanted to do something, until he like actually had to do something about it. So being arrested would be a strong step forward, it would be a lot. But for him technically it shouldn’t be a problem. He was so privileged both moneywise and concerning his general whiteness and Britishness, that even if he was detained probably nothing too bad would happen. He didn’t even have a real job he could potentially lose since he was his own employer. The thought of actual prison though was terrifying, as unlikely as it was that he would end up there. And after all, wouldn’t it be a good thing. He would gain popularity. He might lose some followers that would think him too radical or just didn’t agree with him. But when was the last video he had made a video anyways and didn’t he for too long avoid taking a stance on literally anything? He wasn’t one too stir much controversy, but shouldn’t he be? His thoughts circled around the same issues again and again not coming to a real conclusion. 

The third episode had just finished when Phil paused the TV and turned to him asking „Dan, what’s going on? “  
Dan tried to look confused „What do you mean, what’s going on? “

„You haven’t really been paying attention to the TV and you haven’t checked your phone once in the last hour. You are thinking about something. I can hear your brain rattling from over here. “  
Dan sighed. „Okay, well I got an E-Mail today asking me to join the rebellion“ 

Phil raised an eyebrow signalling Dan to continue. That’s how Dan told him about the E-Mail and some of the things he had been pondering in the last two hours.  
Phil was listening intently until Dan had finished and then said „I don’t know. “

„You don’t know? What do you mean? “ Dan had hoped for a bit more of a reaction. 

„I just don’t want you to do anything because you feel like it might be a good idea to prove something to yourself.“ Phil continued „There are lots of ways that you can try to make a change, you are already doing that, but I think you know that. Why this? “

Was that really what it was about? Dan thought. Proving something to himself. 

„Because... maybe that is a part of it. Fuck, I don’t know. It is unlike something people would expect me to do, more spontaneous, less control.“ Dan was watching Phil’s every reaction to his words. „This year was all about putting myself out there, trying to live my truth. Maybe it can be about more than that though. Telling everyone who I want to fuck might be helping a lot of people, but it is also ultimately selfish. Making a big deal of me, my story. I want to stand for something that is bigger than myself. And that means taking a stance politically, making risky choices, not knowing if I will always be right and alienating some people.“  
Phil set down his water glass, only averting his eyes from Dan for a split second. „I understand“ he responds and then is silent. 

„Yes?“ Dan wasn’t really satisfied with Phil’s reaction yet, he wanted encouragement, more encouragement than that. 

„Dan, I’m worried about you getting arrested“ and „I don’t really know about the group, are they not some weird apocalypse cult“ Dan was raising an eyebrow  
„Or maybe they are not, I don’t know.„ What Phil actually thought that without Dan he probably wouldn’t even know them. „But I will support you, you know that right? Just maybe sleep about it for a night or two. You can answer them in a bit“. 

In an offer for peace Phil extended his hand over the growing distance that had built between them on the sofa. Dan took Phil’s hand resting on his thigh and sighed „You’re right.“ And snuggled closer to Phil „Let’s watch another episode and then go to bed?“


End file.
